Apparatus for forming flexible metal tubes.



PATENTED MAY 2, 1905 M. M. WATERMAN & D. H. HOLLOWAY. APPARATUS FOR FORMING FLEXIBLE METAL TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 11. 1904. I

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I W 1 =5: a iagi m b M 7 W ll r m m lNVE/VTORS WM Attorney No. 788,970. PATENTED MAY 2, 1905. M. M. WATERMAN & D. H. HOLLOWAY. APPARATUS FOR FORMING FLEXIBLE METAL TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 11. 1904.

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WITNESSES At/ornzy UNTTEE STATES Patented May 2, 1905.

PATENT OEETEE.

MARCUS M. VVATERMAN, OF TROY, AND DELLFORD H. HOLLOWAY, OF WVATERFORD, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO STERLING ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF TROY. NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR FORMING FLEXIBLE METAL TUBES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 788,970, dated May 2, 1905.

Application filed May 11, 1904- Serial No. 207,417.

To (LU/ 1071 0771, it may concern:

Be it known that we, MARoUs M. WATER- MAN, a resident of Troy, in the county of Rensselaer, and DELLFORD I-I. HOLLOWAY, a resident of Waterford, in the county of Saratoga, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Forming Flexible Metal Tubes;

and we do hereby declare the following to be To a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to an improved apparatus for making a flexible metal tube, one object of the invention being to provide means for constructing a flexible tube having a uniform diameter throughout and which will not require the employment of packing between the joints.

A further object is to so construct the apparatus that it will operate to form from a single strip a flexible metal tube having overlapping convolutions.

z 5 A further object is to provide means for bending or crimping a strip of metal transversely of the strip and'means for coiling said bent or crimped strip in such manner that its convolutions will overlap and form a flexible tube having closed oints and which shall have a uniform diameter throughout A further object is to so construct the machine that it will operate to bend or crimp a strip of metal transversely and also curve the g 5 strip laterally and subsequently coil said crimped and curved strip spirally with the convolutions overlapping.

With these objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of construco tion and combinations and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in horizontal section, illustrating 5 our improvements. Fig. 2 is a View in vertical section on the line 2 z of Fig. 3. Fig. 3

is a view on the line a: a of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an enlarged view, in vertical section, illustrating the tube-coiling mechanism. Fig. 5 is a view in section on the line y y of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of the coiling-rolls re moved. Fig. 7 is a view in longitudinal section of the tube produced by the apparatus. Fig. 8 is a view of a portion of the formed strip before being coiled into tubular form. Fig. 9 is a detail view of the guide 33.

In order that the tube shall be of commercial value and utility, it must have a uniform diameter throughout, and to make such a tube so that it shall be flexible and at the same time avoid open oints the edges of the convolutions of the coiled strip must be made to overlap. Such a tube is made by means of the apparatuswhich we have devised that is to say, a flexible metal tube made from a single strip with overlapping convolutions and having a uniform diameter throughout. The uniform diameter of the tube is effected by curving the strip laterally before coiling it, and the movable overlapping joints of the tube (without the use of packing means in the oints) are made possible by curving the strip twice transversely before coiling it.

1 represents a table or support at one corner of which a bearing 2 is provided for a drive-shaft 3, the latter carrying a pulley 4, to which motion is transmitted from any suitable source of power. A small beveled gear 5 is secured to shaft 3 and transmits motion to a larger beveled gear 6 on a shaft 7, mounted in a bearing 8 on the table 1. The shaft 7 is provided at one end with a pinion 9, meshing with similar pinions 10 for driving die-rolls 11 and 12. The die-rolls are arranged in pairs 11 11 and 12 12, with their meeting or adjacent forming edges in the same horizontal plane, and are secured to large journals 13, mounted in wide bearings 14 in parallel heavy plates 15, constituting a compact frame secured on table 1. The pinions 10, above referred to, are secured to journals 13 of the lower pair of rolls and mesh with similar pinions 16 on the upper pair of rolls, one of which may be removed, if desired, to prevent crowding of the metal strip between the pairs of rolls by reason of a too rapid feed of the rear pair of rolls, as will be readily understood.

The metal strip 17 is drawn from any suitable reel or other source of supply between the first pair of rolls 12 12, which bend one side or edge portion of the strip transversely of the strip into the slightly-curved portion 18 and upturned flange or lip 19, and the next pair of rolls 11 11 bend the other side or edge portion of the strip transversely of the strip into the larger curved portion 20 and inwardly-turned flange or lip 21. The rolls 11 11 are made to exert a greater pressure than the first pair of rolls 12 12, so as to lengthen this side or edge of the strip and compel the latter to curve in the arc of a circle laterally, as shown clearly at 22 in Fig. 1. This lateral curving of the strip we have found to be necessary to enable the strip to be coiled spirally and form a cylindrical tube of uniform diameter with the convolutions of the strip overlapped. The portions 18 20 of the strip are curved in the same direction, as shown in Fig. 8, the curving of the metal being transversely or crosswise of the strip, and said curved portions extend throughout the length of the strip.

Upon a frame 23, secured on table 1 and located at an angle to the roll-frame, a shaft 24 is mounted and provided with a tapered end, the forward portion of said shaft constituting a mandrel 25. The shaft 24 has a large gear 26 on one end, with which a smaller gear 27 on a drive-shaft 28 meshes, and a pulley 29 is secured on said drive-shaft and receives motion from any suitable source of power.

Around the mandrel 25 of shaft 24 preferably four (more or less) shaping-rolls 30 are mounted to revolve and are all located equidistant from mandrel 25 and parallel therewith. All of said shaping-rolls have wide gears 31 thereon meshing with a similar gear 32 on shaft 24, and all turn at the same speed with the mandrel. The shaping-rolls 30 are provided with a series of annular grooves, and the grooves of the several rolls are located out of alinement and in regular stepped formation, as shown diagrammatically in Fig. 6, and form, in effect, a conical revolving die or series of dies to shape the strip around the mandrel. An adjustable uide or ejector 33, Fig. 9, is located in the rame, as shown in Fig. 5, and with this guide or ejector the end of the formed tube engages to start and maintain a continuous feed of the tube from the mandrel as it is formed, said rearward movement of the tube being also accomplished by the formation of the shaping-rolls, due to the grooves thereof being out of alinement and in stepped forma tion.

The operation of our improvements is as follows: The flat metal strip 17 passes first between the rolls 12 12, which form the trans versely-curved portion 18 thereof and turn up the flange or lip 19 at one edge. The strip then passes between rolls 11 11, which form the larger transversely-curved portion 20 and inwardly-turned flange or lip 21, and as this second pair of rolls exert a greater pressure than the first (as before stated) this side or edge of the strip will be elongated and give to the shaped strip a lateral curvature sufficient to enable the strip to be spirally coiled and form a cylindrical tube having overlapped convolutions. The strip then passes between two of the shaping-rolls 30, under the mandrel 25, and thence around over the mandrel between the same and shaping-rolls, being guided or held in the grooves of said shaping-rolls and pressed tightly on the mandrel by the rolls, and the curved portion 20 of the strip is compelled to overlap the portion 18 and flange or lip 19 of the adjacent convolution and securely lock the convolutions together, imparting flexibility to the tube, yet preventing possibility of the convolutions separating when the tube is bent in use.

The tube is fed off the mandrel by reason of its contact with the guide or ejector 33 and the formation of grooves of the shapingrolls, and the operation is therefore a continuous one, as the tube feeds from the mandrel as fast as it is formedand can be cut into any lengths desired without disturbing the operation of the apparatus.

Various changes might be made in the details of construction of our invention without departing from the spirit thereof or limiting its scope, and hence we do not wish to limit ourselves to the precise details herein set forth.

Having fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. An apparatus for making a flexible metal tube, comprising winding or coiling means, and means for curving a strip laterally and feeding it to said winding or coiling means.

2. In an apparatus for making a flexible metal tube, the combination of means for bending or crimping a strip transversely and curving the same laterally, and means for spirally winding and overlapping the convolutions of said laterally-curved crimped strip.

3. An apparatus for V forming a flexible metal tube, comprising means for forming a metal strip with an upturned flange or lip at one edge and an inwardly-turned flange or lipat its other edge and bending said strip into lateral curvature, and means for spirally winding the strip thus formed.

ITO

4. In an apparatus for forming a flexible metal tube, the combination with means for shaping a metal strip with an inwardlyturned flange or lip at one edge and an outwardly-turned flange or lip at its other edge, of a mandrel, a series of grooved shaping-rolls around the mandrel, means for turning said mandrel and shaping-rolls to wind the strip spirally on the mandrel, and means for curving the strip laterally and feeding it to said grooved rolls and mandrel.

5. In an apparatus for forming a flexible metal tube, the combination with two pairs of rolls between which a metal strip is adaptde to pass, one pair of rolls adapted to form one edge or side portion of the strip and the other pair of rolls adapted to form the other portion of the strip and exert greater pressure than the first pair of rolls to give to the strip a lateral curvature, and means for bending said strip spirally with overlapping convolutions, after it has been curved laterally.

6. In an apparatus for forming a flexible metal tube, the combination with rolls adapted to give to the strip the desired formation and curve it laterally, of a winding or coiling mechanism to which the laterally-curved strip is fed by the rolls, said winding or coiling mechanism comprising a mandrel, a series of shaping-rolls around the mandrel and having each a series of annular grooves, the grooves of the different rolls being out of lme and 1n regular stepped formation and adapted to wind the strip spirally about the mandrel and overlap the eonvolutions of said strip.

7. In an apparatus for forming a flexible metal tube, the combination with rolls con structed and adapted to give to the strip the desired formation and curve it laterally, of a mandrel to receive the laterally-curved strip, a series of shaping-rolls around the mandrel, means for turning all of said shaping-rolls and mandrel at the same speed to wind the strip spirally about the mandrel and overlap the oonvolutions of said strip, and an adjustable guide or ejector against which the end of the formed tube engages to continuously eject the formed tube from the mandrel.

8. In an apparatus for forming a flexible metal tube, the combination of one or more pairs of rolls between which a metal strip is adapted to pass, said one or more pairs of rolls adapted to form both edges or side portions of the strip and exert greater pressure on one side than the other to give the strip a lateral curvature, and means for bending said laterally-curved strip spirally.

In testimony whereof we have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

MARCUS M. WATERMAN. DELLFORD H. HOLLOWAY.

Witnesses:-

CHARLES D. LooKwoon, GEO. W. Dow. 

